Most mothers tell their sons never to play with knives or fire. Via "VJ" Tiumalu Jr. is the best in the world at doing both.

For more than 12 years, the Orlando resident has been perfecting the art of fireknife dancing, a Polynesian spectacle whose practitioners brandish flaming, sharpened knives — spinning, catching and even balancing them on their callused feet. In May, Tiumalu earned his third Senior Division title at the annual World Fireknife Championships in Laie, Hawaii.

Competitive fireknife dance is a sport that few are aware of, but Tiumalu can scarcely recall a time when it was not a part of his life. Born to parents of Samoan ancestry, he said his earliest memories are road trips with his family to shows where his father performed the dance for tourists. Soon enough, the skill rubbed off.

"I guess he saw the potential in me," said Tiumalu, 22. "Every time, when I was little, if I saw a stick lying around, I'd pick it up and start spinning it."

At 10 years old, Tiumalu began lighting those sticks on fire. At 13, he won his first World Fireknife Championship in the Junior Division. By the time he was in high school, Tiumalu was twirling knives at the Universal Studios Luau show at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort, a gig that led to his current job as part of the Festival of the Lion King show at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Tiumalu's fiery leaps and twirls are the latest in a long legacy. Fireknife dance has its roots in the "ailao," a traditional dance performed by Samoan warriors before battle. Originally, the steps were performed with the naked blades of the hooked "nifo oti"machetes, until dancer Uluao "Freddie" Letuli — who had performed in Hollywood films such as "Sailor Beware" with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis — began wrapping the swords in gasoline-soaked towels and lighting them on fire for live performances in the late 1940's.

Fireknife dancing soon became a staple at many luau celebrations, and the first Fireknife Championships were held in 1993 in Samoa. This year's competition drew more than 1,500 spectators as part of the We Are Samoa festival at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Hawaii.

"It's a sport, but it's also dancing, and it's very dangerous," explained PCC Chief Operating Officer Logo Apelu. "The people are attracted to the fact that these young men are dancing with fire and sharp knives."

Fireknife competitors must take special care not to drop the knives, which results in a deduction of several points, or let their fires go out, which instantly ends their performance. Modern fireknife dancers soak their knives in liquid petroleum, which burns cleanly and smokelessly and stays lit even as the performers spin their knives at blinding speeds.

Dancers learn early to respect that fire. To train, Tiumalu regularly walks barefoot on hot Florida asphalt to build up calluses so that he can balance the flaming "nifo oti" on the soles of his feet.

"If you get hit by [the knives], I guarantee you're going to get cut, you're going to get burned," Tiumalu said.

Tiumalu speaks from experience. Many fireknife dancers suffer injuries while practicing their art, and his worst came five years ago at a show in Tampa.

"I was wearing this raffia [palm] around my legs, and they were very dry," he recalls. "I don't know why I was wearing them that night, but I did it anyway. I was laying down, and I was about to put the fire on my feet, and the wind started blowing. My leg caught on fire, so I stood up and tried to take it out, but the fire got bigger. Next thing you know, the band came and tried to help me, and someone came out with a fire extinguisher and put it out."

By the time the fire was gone, Tiumalu had suffered second-degree burns from knee to ankle, resulting in scars that show clearly today.

Three months later, the knives were back in his hands. Tiumalu continues to train today and says that he hopes to work with Cirque du Soleil sometime in the future. For now, he takes pleasure in showing others a small part of his Samoan heritage.

"This is truly an art form, part of the culture," Tiumalu said. "Anyone can do it, any race, but you've got to work hard, be dedicated and be humble at the same time."

"Of course, you're going to get burned," he added. "But you're not going to learn if you don't get burned. You've just got to go through it."